Presently, user equipment (UE), such as wireless communication devices, communicate with other communication devices using wireless signals, such as within a network environment that can include one or more cells within which various communication connections with the network and other devices operating within the network can be supported. Network environments often involve one or more sets of standards, which each define various aspects of any communication connection being made when using the corresponding standard within the network environment. As new standards, such as new radio access technology (NR), are being developed to support additional or extended capabilities through the development of a different set of operating parameters, the present inventors have recognized that dynamic coexistence between the new standard and any preexisting standards, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS), Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), and/or Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), could be considered in support of a progressive migration. This can include instances where the different standards are intended to operate with overlapping bandwidths in the same block of spectrum.
For example, in LTE, synchronization signals are transmitted within the center 6 physical resource blocks (PRBs) of a transmission channel bandwidth, where a PRB consists of 12 subcarriers. While this can make it easier to locate and identify the synchronization signals, restricting the location of the synchronization signals in a predetermined way with this level of specificity can make the system less flexible in terms of introducing a new type of service, which might otherwise beneficially employ different forms, such as forms that can incorporate different numerology sets. Strict adherence to a specific detailed and predefined signaling structure can make a system less flexible in terms of avoiding strong interference to a primary synchronization signal and/or a secondary synchronization signal. Furthermore, this can make a system less flexible in terms of enabling shared spectrum access with other radio access technologies.
The present inventors have recognized that a multilevel approach for receiving reference signals can be used to allow a more flexible approach for cell detection as part of initiating a communication connection and/or maintaining an ongoing communication connection with a network. Such a flexible multilevel approach can further be used to support dynamic coexistence between multiple types of communications in accordance with both new and legacy communication standards for a more progressive migration to newer communication standards.